[GeorgeGoodman]

You are right, but he HE-6s sounded excellent with the amp. You should try to hear one before you come to conclusions. You might be pleasantly surprised. 

 

[wuwhere]

Well I haven't concluded that it can't do it. I'm sure it can. My TTVJ Portable Hybrid at its max volume can drive the HE-6, just not loud enough. My question is can the SR71B drive the HE-6 adequately. Many (perhaps a few only?) HE-6 owners have found or felt that their high-end HP amps are not adequate to drive the HE-6 to their satisfaction. And this prompted my curiosity, hence my questions. I guess we'll only know if and when someone here compares the SR71B with a desktop HP amp and perhaps even with a speaker amp through the HE-6.

 

[edwardsean]

Hi, it sounds like this is going to be an amazing amp for balanced DACs into full-size headphones. Any word on IEMs like the JH 13s that don't require that kind of power?I am currently running the JH13s off the Protector and, like many, are wondering if it is worth the upgrade. Is it worth the extra cost and bulk for IEMs, especially without a balanced DAC?

 

[anm]

sorry for extending the OT - how do you guys connect your headphones to speaker amps?

 

[jamato8]

Quote:

sorry for extending the OT - how do you guys connect your headphones to speaker amps?

I would go the the headphone threads and look under the HE-6 thread. 

Quote:

Hi, it sounds like this is going to be an amazing amp for balanced DACs into full-size headphones. Any word on IEMs like the JH 13s that don't require that kind of power?I am currently running the JH13s off the Protector and, like many, are wondering if it is worth the upgrade. Is it worth the extra cost and bulk for IEMs, especially without a balanced DAC?

Well I have the JH13's and will be able to tell you if I hear any difference both with and without a balanced source to the 71b. 

 

[nc8000]

Quote:

Hi, it sounds like this is going to be an amazing amp for balanced DACs into full-size headphones. Any word on IEMs like the JH 13s that don't require that kind of power?I am currently running the JH13s off the Protector and, like many, are wondering if it is worth the upgrade. Is it worth the extra cost and bulk for IEMs, especially without a balanced DAC?

Ray told me not to upgrade from Protector+JH13 but that was based on me not using a balanced source and only 320KB aac files

 

[Xan7hos]

I'd like to chime in about the HE-6/SR-71B discussion, so apologies if this is a bit off topic. And I'm coming from owning a HE-5 and an iBasso PB1, so please take it for what it's worth to you. My history of the HE-5 has been nothing short of love hate, hate because I had the most difficult time amping it properly (bass would clip on my once owned Purity Audio KICAS Caliente), and when it was amped properly (when I owned the EF-5), it still had a tad too much treble energy for my tastes. Well, I've been trying to part with my HE-5, but no bites. I knew I wanted a balanced amplifier someday when people described how it made the soundstage sound more three dimensional, and lo and behold here comes both Ray's Protector and iBasso's Toucan. I settled for the Toucan, and just to entertain myself I reterminated my HE-5 with a Hirose balanced plug. I'm not one for snake oil claims and your stereotypical "it changed everything" babble, but I was very very very very impressed when I heard the HE-5 balanced on the PB1. It was able to adequately drive the HE-5s, and not only were they dynamic, but for the first time the soundstage and imaging sounded coherent (which was an issue for me when the HE-5 was single-ended) The word that immediately came to my mind was "correct." The soundstage and imaging was for the first time and finally correct. Because of the inherent design of balanced, the background was noticeably blacker to the point where, for the first time since I could remember, I was hearing things in recordings that I've never heard before. All of this coming from this little portable piece of thing, which the volume pot not even close to max (hovers around 2-3 o'clock).
 
 
Now obviously this may have no relevance at all to the current discussion of the SR-71B...or the HE-6 for that matter. But if the SR-71B performs anywhere near the level of the PB1, and FWIR it ought to surpass it, then I would say that you're definitely in for a big treat when you pair the two together. 

 

[Kiatchai]

Can the SR71B with single ended input and balanced output only drive the HE6 good enough?
The reason that I am asking because it is difficult to find a portable balanced input except the ibasso boomslang
which use different pins from the mini 4pin XLR of the protector & 71B

 

[jamato8]

Quote:

Can the SR71B with single ended input and balanced output only drive the HE6 good enough?
The reason that I am asking because it is difficult to find a portable balanced input except the ibasso boomslang
which use different pins from the mini 4pin XLR of the protector & 71B

The input doesn't determine the power out, the amp does. If you use the 71b in balanced then you will achieve the ability to drive them as has been described by others in the thread. The sound I assume will be different since a balanced dac is different but the power will be the same. 

 

[nc8000]

You just need the right cable to pair the Boomslang with the SR-71B. Craig from Whiplash amongst others should be able to deliver such a cable or you can make one yourself if you have the skills (I don't so have to buy these things).

 

[Audio-Omega]

Skylab, is the amp on par with some of your desktop amps ?

 

[Skylab]

Quote:

Well I haven't concluded that it can't do it. I'm sure it can. My TTVJ Portable Hybrid at its max volume can drive the HE-6, just not loud enough. My question is can the SR71B drive the HE-6 adequately. Many (perhaps a few only?) HE-6 owners have found or felt that their high-end HP amps are not adequate to drive the HE-6 to their satisfaction. And this prompted my curiosity, hence my questions. I guess we'll only know if and when someone here compares the SR71B with a desktop HP amp and perhaps even with a speaker amp through the HE-6.

I have already done some of that, and it seems to me that the SR71B can indeed drive the HE-6 adequately.  This morning I spent a short amount of time listening FAR louder than I normally would, and far louder than anyone actually should.  There was still no audible clipping or distortion, and the sound was clean and unstressed.  I still hear just a little congestion during very loud and busy passages, but I have heard that from home amps trying to drive the HE-6 as well. 
 


Quote:

Skylab, is the amp on par with some of your desktop amps ?

I think the SR71B drives the HE-6 slightly better than the Meier Concerto does, but the HE-6 is a stretch for the Concerto.  My big tube amps (all but one of which can drive speakers) do sound a bit better with the HE-6 than the SR71B...but they are all at least 2x the price, and 50 times the weight...

 

[Audio-Omega]

Alright I will be getting HE-6.  Thanks.  

 

[Kiatchai]

Dear Jamato,
   I am a little bit confused because I am having one beta 22 built and was explained about the gain setting of the
beta 22.  It seems that when you have the balanced input you can double the power of the beta 22 not just the soundstage
and the quality of the sound.  I don't know whether this is correct or not but if it is as you described I can be assured that
the SR71b will drive the HE6 adequately because in skylab's setting he also used the balanced output (and balanced input
from the Yulong DAC)
   I hope skylab will report on this also

 

[jpelg]

Balanced output is of considerably higher voltage than SE, even from the same source having both types of outputs.
 
This affects the sound coming from the amp.